Achieving food security in Cuba

Question 1

What was Cuban agriculture like in the 1960s?

Answer 1

Highly industrialised and relied on USSR for fuel, fertilisers and pesticides

Question 2

What percent of oil imports and external trade did Cuba lose when the USSR collapsed?

Answer 2

50% oil imports and 85% of external trade (1991)

Question 3

How self-sufficient is Cuba for fruit and veg?

Answer 3

90% self-sufficient

Question 4

What food products does Cuba import?

Answer 4

Cereals, milk protein and meats

Question 5

How much money did Cuba spend on food imports in 2008?

Answer 5

$2.2 billion (including $700 million on rice)

Question 6

What challenges face Cuban agriculture?

Answer 6

• Increased frequency of severe weather events
• Degraded soils
• Lack of mechanisation
• Inefficient state-owned farms
• Shortage of foreign exchange to buy imported food
• Insufficient food shops that lack produce
• Black market for eggs and alcohol

Question 7

What are organiponicos?

Answer 7

Urban farms on a small-scale that produce fruit and veg on urban waste ground

Question 8

Figures about Havana’s demand for fruit:

Answer 8

Half of Havana’s demand for fruit and veg is supplied by 383,000 urban farms that employ 140,000 workers

Question 9

What is permaculture?

Answer 9

Food production in a closed loop that is sustainable

Question 10

How do organiponicos support permaculture?

Answer 10

Shortages of fertilisers and pesticides mean produce is organic and oxen used

Question 11

Example of organiponico:

Answer 11

Vivero Organiponico Alamar = 11 ha farm employing 164 people
Produces veg, herbs, spices and fruit to local communities, hotels, and restaurants

Question 12

What has been the change in land tenure in Cuba?

Answer 12

Inefficient state-run farms have given way to small-scale cooperatives that comprise 10,000 acres of rent-free land leased from state

Question 13

What percent of Cuba’s arable land is privately owned?

Answer 13

15%

Question 14

What types of crops are farmers in Cuba adopting?

Answer 14

Drought-resistant crops – avocados, oranges, and guava
Wind-resistant crops – sweet potato, squash, yams
Gm crops – planted across 14 provinces

Question 15

What support is there for Cuban farmers?

Answer 15

Government raising guaranteed prices
Programmes such as the Programme of Local support for the Modernisation of Agriculture (PALMA) which provides irrigation systems and rents equipment to drill bore holes